BaxterStorey launches academy to teach five-star service

BaxterStorey has launched an in-house service academy which aims to instil team members with the confidence to deliver hospitality to rival that of a five-star hotel.

The initiative, which was launched this week, is designed to complement the firm’s Chef Academy and Barista Academy.

Like the other academies, it will be headed by an in-house trainer who has devised a programme bespoke to the business. Modules within the Service Academy headed by Gabrielle Le Roux will teach both soft and technical skills, with those graduating achieving recognised qualifications such as Level 1 and Level 2 from the Wine and Spirit Education Trust.

BaxterStorey chief executive Noel Mahony said: “Our clients now look at hospitality service from a new perspective, with many bringing hospitality in-house but demand an offer to reflect that of a five-star hotel, or Michelin-starred restaurant.

“The BaxterStorey Service Academy ensures our people are equipped to provide the very highest levels of service, matching the skillsets of those offering top-level service outside the contract catering industry.”

Speaking at the launch of the academy, WSH chairman Alastair Storey added that the courses would embolden those working at the point of service.

He said: “We are blessed to have very good chefs in the UK and I think there is a great deal of enthusiasm for people to get into the culinary world, but we must never forget the person at the point of service who make an enormous difference.

“The skills that these people have – the ability to talk about the product, the ability to talk about the wines, and the ability to interpret the mood of the room, a table or a customer and react appropriately – these are critical skills. You can have the finest food in the world, but if you let the front of house down it doesn’t work and that is why training is so important.”